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Parents' Guide to

The Naked Brothers Band

By Emily Ashby, Common Sense Media Reviewer

age 10+

Tween rockumentary series has a bit of edge.

TV Nickelodeon Comedy 2007
The Naked Brothers Band Poster Image

A Lot or a Little?

What you will—and won't—find in this TV show.

Community Reviews

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age 8+

Based on 10 parent reviews

Al Jackson
Al Jackson Adult
April 18, 2012
age 7+

I can't stand it.

The only reason why I am giving this show a 2 instead of a 1 is that,only Season 1 of it was good.Now,it's just downhill crap,because they started to use corny punchlines.
NBBFanSite
NBBFanSite Adult
August 30, 2010
age 7+

The show is good for tweens (and even some teens!)

The show may remind adults of 'The Monkees'. The show, which by the way "delivered Nickelodeon's highest-rated premiere in seven years", is a phenomenal musical family production (which is made by a REAL family!) The show is a family clan project, depicting the real musical talents of prodigious brothers Nat & Alex Wolff, who write, perform & sing all of their own music. The boys' mom, actress/writer Polly Draper, who was part of the ensemble cast on ABC's 'Thirtysomething', is the show's runner, creator, executive producer, head writer, and most frequent script writer & director. Draper's husband and the boys' musically acclaimed father, jazz pianist Michael Wolff (band leader of "The Arsenio Hall Show" and worked with tons of musical artists - ranging from jazz singer Nancy Wilson to jazz legend Frank Sinatra), acts as his son's inept father who plays the accordion, is also the show's music supervisor, music producer, and co-executive producer. Basically what Ms. Draper does is that she takes her youngest son's (Alex) quick wits, eldest son's (Nat) songs, and any other encounters and parodies it into a fictional storyline. As the show is a mock documentary (also known as a mockumentary), it spoofs the boys' real musical lives and their band - which they star in with their real childhood friends. Plus cameras follow the boys' everywhere they go - and their's no laugh track either! Mr. Wolff recalls when Nat was young he taught himself how to play major chords on the piano calling them his "proud chords". Also, both boys' take inspiration from the rock-and-roll band, The Beatles (Alex was inspired by Ringo Starr to take up the drums!) After Nat nudged his parents to become a child star, she came up with a wonderful idea; she decided to write and direct a low-budget, independent family project - depicting Nat's band. They entered the film into the Hamptons International Film Festival, where it received the Audience Award for Family Feature Film. Nickelodeon, then, picked it up as a pilot for the TV series.
See all 10 parent reviews

What's the Story?

Billed as a "rockumentary" about the celebrity lifestyle of kid rock 'n' rollers, THE NAKED BROTHERS BAND takes a fantasy look at the behind-the-scenes stuff that fans rarely see from their musical idols. Cameras follow the band members from their hangout to rehearsals to music award shows, capturing their struggles with friendship, loyalty, fame, love, and all the uncertainty of early adolescence. Real-life brothers Nat and Alex Wolff star as themselves, along with longtime friends/onscreen band buddies Thomas Batuello and David Levi. Quassim Middleton (who replaces original group member Joshua Kaye) and Allie DiMeco (who plays Nat's love interest, Rosalina) round out the cast. The show picks up two years after where its parent movie, The Naked Brothers Band Movie, left off. The band members have resolved their differences and reaffirmed that their friendship and shared love of music are more important than fame and fortune. Nat (age 11) and Alex (8) continue to write all of the songs, which are featured in each episode's performances and music videos.

Is It Any Good?

Our review:
Parents say (10 ):
Kids say (26 ):

Written and directed by the Wolffs' mom, Polly Draper (thirtysomething), The Naked Brothers Band was inspired by the boys' youthful musical talents, which date from their preschool days. The series keeps it all in the family, with Draper's jazz composer husband, Michael Wolff (The Arsenio Hall Show), co-starring as Nat and Alex's musically inept (onscreen, that is) dad. And Draper's niece, Jesse, lends her talents as the Wolff boys' flighty-but-devoted babysitter.

All in all, the series fares far better than the parent movie did. A little maturity has gone a long way for the young stars, who now tend to steer clear of divisive subject matter and stick to topics that their tween audience will relate to -- like the awkwardness of a budding romance between Nat and Rosalina and the occasional playful prank among the guys (vapor rub instead of hair gel -- ouch!).

Talk to Your Kids About ...

  • Families can talk about the characters' relationships. Do any of the relationships within the band resonate with your tweens?

  • Are the band members' lifestyles far-fetched? Tweens, how do you feel about fame? Would you like to be famous, or is it not worth it?

  • Are the characters good role models? Why or why not?

TV Details

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Research shows a connection between kids' healthy self-esteem and positive portrayals in media. That's why we've added a new "Diverse Representations" section to our reviews that will be rolling out on an ongoing basis. You can help us help kids by suggesting a diversity update.

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